Eat Chic: Inside L.A.'s Most Exclusive Eatery

Imagine West Hollywood, circa Entourage Season 6. Vince's career has been on the rise for some time, and he can't seem to go anywhere for a lunch meeting with Shauna or Eric without having his photo snapped by the paparazzi, fork-to-mouth. At night, no party he frequents goes without the requisite begging in advance or an argument at the door trying to get Drama past the threshold without his name being on the list. Now, imagine if instead of a tequila company funded by billionaire Mark Cuban, Turtle opened a members-only restaurant where he could join Vince, E, Drama and even Ari Gold for a meeting, a dinner of updates on nostalgic Italian menu items, or just drinks with their arm-candy du jour. That would be the perfect place for them to rub elbows with Mark Wahlberg or Bob Saget (or in today's case, Drake or Nicki Minaj) without fear of a superfan approaching for a photo.

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Now put yourself back in 2016, this "step above a restaurant but step below a club" is the celeb-magnetic concept of L.A.'s best reservations-only restaurant: The Nice Guy.

Courtesy of The Nice Guy

With a background in bars and nightlife, Co-owner John Terzian and his partner Brian Toll set out to foster the type of atmosphere members of New York and London's private clubs have come to cherish–but in Los Angeles. Terzian and Toll have a fine-tuned pedigree in the hospitality business, thanks to their other spots: SHOREbar, Bootsy Bellows, HENRY'S and Blind Dragon... and that's just in L.A.; the two also have Heart of Omnia in Las Vegas and a Bootsy Bellows in Aspen in their portfolio, with plans to open another Blind Dragon in Dubai later this year.

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"We grew up in L.A. and a handful of our friends became too prominent to go out to clubs; and a lot of our friends are a bit older and weren't looking for a nightclub scene. We realized there was definitely something missing," Terzian explained. But then there's the issue of striking the balance between just dinner on a Friday night (the kind of weekend night out that leaves you feeling like a senior ordering the Early Bird special) and a raging night out that leaves you with an epic hangover that frankly, wasn't worth it. "A night out to restaurant can be a little boring–people definitely want to have a night out–yet not go out to the level of a club. We found a place that was small enough to feel like a members-only club–but without having to pay membership fees. Basically, a spot where our friends could come, where we open and close when we want and it's super private." The 87-seat dining room (designed by John Sofio of Built Inc.) at Nice Guy struck that balance; but what started as a cocktail bar with a small menu of ten homemade pizzas soon demanded a larger food offering–and fast.

Courtesy of The Nice Guy

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"We didn't expect to create a full restaurant, and a month into it we realized that we loved the restaurant business. We went all out with our chef, creating the menus and adding that element to create what "it" is." It is this indescribable thing that Terzian nor we can really put our finger on–yet the reason that we were looking to speak to him for this very story. What is The Nice Guy? It is not a restaurant, or a club or a lounge... John was stumped too. "It would be tough to define what it is...but a lot of my friends call it Headquarters." That settles it; the Nice Guy is a sort of cool kids HQ–"you either eat there with friends, you meet someone there for drinks, for food, you go on a date there; as long as you are friends with us or a friend of a friend, you're in." Once you are officially a member and always on the list, the Johnny Dramas of your group can officially relax, take a deep breath and have a drink. Here, the staff knows you, what you order and what table you prefer. Once you're seated, the owners always stop by to check on you and make sure you're being well taken care of.

As for the food, it's all a nod to places Terzian and Toll know and love. "I grew up going to Dan Tana's and back in the era, it was Sinatra and every major person and their crews who would hang out there–our concept sort of stemmed from a similar Italian-inspired menu, but we call it a hotel menu. That's our group's term for offering a wide variety of things that are all somewhat in the same vein, but the menu definitely has that New-American flair" (tacos and pasta harmoniously co-existing on the same menu are exhibit A). "It took months for the crowd to understand what we were, and then it took some months for us to get the food down; I, personally, was not pleased with it at the beginning," Terzian admits. "We've been open over a year and a half now and it took a lot of work to get to where we are–and we're still working on it." That work translates to a top-notch burger loaded up with maple-glazed bacon, arugula, caramelized onions and cheese served with fries. Or a well-seasoned roasted vegetable medley or a salad menu off which the fresh kale salad is the most popular. In the mood for the type of food that inspired the place? Go for one of the pastas or one of the creatively topped pizzas, like the Duck Banh Mi with confit duck, fontina, pickled veggies and Sriracha.

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Courtesy of The Nice Guy

Courtesy of The Nice Guy

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If Terzian's ordering off his own menu, he goes for The 12 oz. Ribeye broiled with herb butter, but also admits to loving the meatballs served in spicy tomato sauce (it's your choice whether or not they come with burrata). If he's ordering something from the bar, "I'm a simple guy, I drink vodka on the rocks.; but the drink that I'm most proud of is named after a friend of mine from another one of my restaurants, it's called the JoJo."

The JoJo; The Hotline Pear; A Mo's Paloma

Courtesy of The Nice Guy

These guys are old school, spending almost any moment they're not at home at The Nice Guy."You have to live and breathe it; to this day, I am there with my partners every single day and night." As for whether he's finally happy with the cuisine: "I'm never happy. I'm always upset with something–because the place is a baby of mine. But overall, I'm very happy. When you're coming to The Nice Guy, you're either coming to hang out with me or my partner or a friend of ours...the fact that we're there each day and we touch each table, talking to people...it all kind of goes hand in hand in making the place what it is." When he's not at his own restaurant or dining at home, Terzian can likely be found at The Chateau Marmont (cue the Entourage analogy once more) or at his childhood favorites and inspirations: Craig's or Dan Tana's, eating food that he hopes guests are reminded of when they dine on modern takes of the classics at his far more intimate eatery.

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The pressure to strike the perfect balance between restaurant and nightclub follows Terzian and Toll, and the music reflects the delicate hand at which they strike it. So, what does a place that hosts Drake one night and Nicki Minaj the next play? "We have a live singer every night who sings oldies and often times new stuff that just sounds old due to the style, it's old school. My mom was a piano teacher and so every holiday for us was always centered around the piano. Having a background singer is so simple and yet so many places don't do it." After the nightly live performance, some nights also include a DJ set.

John Terzian

Courtesy of The Nice Guy

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As for how to score a table, loyalty is key. "Our point was to not have it be pretentious. It's not about celebrities. We're usually open for reservations in the early hours, from 6-7pm, but people are calling and reserving months in advance now. It's a really good problem to have and something that restauranteurs dream of." But, like purchasing an Hermès Birkin, it's all about building trust rather than buying your way in with one major purchase. "It's not like a club in a lot of ways. We don't allow bottle service, you can't buy a table. We only work on dinner reservations. The only reason you would say that it's similar to a club is because it's become popular to just go even if you're not eating–it's very social. We have a rolodex of approved people that can call or email in and are allowed to make a reservation anytime; it took a while for people to figure that out, but it's about consistency–a ton of our people eat there three times a week." When you're in town, instead of one reservation, make two. To get in with these guys, become a regular.

So what's next for the guys behind The Nice Guy (aside from a new opening in Dubai)? "Right now for Nice Guy it's truly about keeping an eye on food, the operations and making sure it runs perfectly. There's always going to be places that come and go and our hope is that this is a legend type place that lasts for 30-40 years or more. That's always something I've wanted is a brand that lasts well past my lifetime."

The Nice Guy is located at 401 North La Cienega Blvd in West Hollywood and is open for dinner every day at 6pm. For reservations: call 310-360-9500 or email info@theniceguyla.com. Hint: Tell them we sent you.

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